wildfires

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'Unfathomable' Fires Break New Record

California fires have destroyed over 4M acres

(Newser) - Deadly wildfires in California have burned more than 4 million acres this year—more than double the previous record for the most land burned in a single year in the state, the AP reports. California fire officials said the state hit the astonishing milestone Sunday with about two months remaining...

Oaky Wines Are Fine. Ashy, Not So Much

This year's crop could be a disaster

(Newser) - Smoke from the West Coast wildfires has tainted grapes in some of the nation's most celebrated wine regions with an ashy flavor that could spell disaster for the 2020 vintage, per the AP . Wineries in California, Oregon, and Washington have survived severe wildfires before, but the smoke from this...

Joe Rogan on Wildfire Rumors: 'I'm Very Upset With Myself'

Podcast host apologizes for spreading misinformation about fires out West

(Newser) - Comedian Joe Rogan moved his popular eponymous podcast to Spotify at the beginning of the month, and he got things moving last week by making an accusation regarding wildfires near Portland, Ore. "There is a madness going on there," Rogan said during Thursday's podcast, per CNN Business...

&#39;Maybe Millions&#39; of Birds Dying of Unknown Causes
Masses of Migratory Birds
Are Dropping Dead
in case you missed it
Sep 19, 2020 11:00 AM CDT

Masses of Migratory Birds Are Dropping Dead

Necropsies are underway in New Mexico

(Newser) - Hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of birds are dropping dead in New Mexico, alarming biologists who suspect wildfires could be playing a role. A large number of migratory birds were found dead at the US Army White Sands Missile Range and White Sands National Monument on Aug. 20, before more...

Out of a Gender Reveal Gone Wrong, a New Tragedy

Firefighter has died near Pinezanita, Calif., in blaze sparked by party

(Newser) - On Thursday night, police and firefighters began searching for a missing elite "Hotshot" firefighter near Pinezanita, Calif., which has been engulfed in flames from a blaze started during a gender reveal party, reports KTLA . By Friday morning, sad news had emerged, per CNN . "USDA Forest Service officials on...

Smoke Forces Yosemite&#39;s Closure
Smoke Forces
Yosemite's Closure
Sep 18, 2020 8:46 AM CDT

Smoke Forces Yosemite's Closure

Hazardous air expected for several days

(Newser) - Yosemite National Park has been closed indefinitely as smoke from wildfires turns the air into a polluted mess. An air quality monitor run by the federal government showed a pollution score of 681 in the park on Thursday, per the Los Angeles Times . Hazardous air is anything scoring above 300....

These Firefighters Are Spent, but They Muster a Song
Oregon Firefighters Sing
After a 14-Hour Shift
video
Sep 17, 2020 12:25 PM CDT

Oregon Firefighters Sing After a 14-Hour Shift

'Take me out to the fire...'

(Newser) - They look exhausted, and no wonder: The team of firefighters in Oregon had just spent 14 hours battling wildfires, reports ABC30 . But the team known as the Big Bark Chippers weren't too tired to deliver their own version of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," as shown...

Grim Arrival in Ore.: First Mobile Morgue

There have been 8 deaths in the state; 22 are confirmed missing

(Newser) - State Police have opened Oregon's first-ever mobile morgue with dozens of deaths expected in raging wildfires that have already burned some 900,000 acres. The official death count was reduced from 10 to eight after two sets of remains in Jackson County were determined to be animals. But 22...

Smoke From West Coast Fires Reaches DC, New York

And it has reportedly also reached Midwest, Canada, Europe

(Newser) - From Washington state to Washington, DC—the National Weather Service said Monday that smoke from the wildfires on the west coast of the US could be seen across the country at the National Mall. The NWS says the smoke caught a jet stream, moving at an altitude as high as...

Homeowner Finds Barn Gone, Animals Still Alive

Monday's windy forecast brings no relief out West in wildfire fight

(Newser) - A story out of rural Oregon provides a glimpse at the scope of the wildfire fight: NBC News reports that Upper McKenzie fire chief Rainbow Plews and several members of her volunteer crew lost their homes as they battled a blaze about 20 miles away. “I threw up. I...

Fire Marshal Quits as Wildfires Devastate Oregon
Fire Marshal
Quits Amid
Horrific
Spate of
Wildfires
the rundown
Sep 13, 2020 2:30 PM CDT

Fire Marshal Quits Amid Horrific Spate of Wildfires

Meanwhile, tragedy strikes a family and their dog

(Newser) - Oregon's fire marshal has stepped down as a deadly rash of wildfires ravage his state, the Oregonian reports. Details remain foggy, but an insider suggests Fire Marshal Jim Walker wasn't up to the job. He allegedly handed over daily management of the crisis to his chief deputy, Mariana...

Facebook to Pull Posts Blaming Fires on Antifa

Sheriff's deputy who spread false information is put on leave

(Newser) - Facebook is heeding the pleas of law enforcement and taking down posts that falsely say antifa started the wildfires now raging in the West. One sheriff's department in Oregon said its staff and 911 dispatchers have been swamped with requests for information after a rumor circulated that it had...

'Mass Fatality Event' Looms in One State

But changing weather might help firefighters in Oregon and California

(Newser) - Diminishing winds and rising humidity helped firefighters battling deadly blazes in Oregon and California, but with dozens of people still missing, authorities in both states feared that the receding flames could reveal many more dead across the blackened landscape, the AP reports. Oregon's emergency management director said officials were...

Deadliest US Blaze of 2020: 'No Fighting This Fire'

At least 9 are dead as area burned in California surpasses size of Connecticut

(Newser) - Berry Creek, Calif., has been largely destroyed in what has become the deadliest fire of 2020, a year that has already shattered California records for the most area burned—more land than the state of Connecticut—and recorded the largest fire of all time in the state. Five of the...

Trump's Silence on Wildfires Draws Media Scrutiny

Pence expresses concern, but president hasn't mentioned deaths or destruction

(Newser) - Huge wildfires have combined and are closing in on towns and suburbs, rapidly deepening the crisis on the West Coast. "We are preparing for a mass fatality incident based on what we know and the numbers of structures that have been lost," Oregon's emergency management director said...

Portland Has World's Worst Air Quality

Fires push city to No. 1, with Seattle and San Francisco right behind

(Newser) - The wildfires burning in Oregon and Washington have made the air quality in Portland not just bad but dangerous. In the past day, IQAir.com has moved the Oregon city to the top of its list, meaning it has the worst air quality of any major city in the world—...

10% of Oregon's Population Has Evacuated

That's more than half a million people

(Newser) - As Oregon continues to burn , more than 10% of the population—over half a million people—has been forced to evacuate. Wildfires have burned more than 1,400 square miles in the state of 4.2 million this week, the AP reports. The rest of the US Pacific Coast is...

Surreal Fire Images, Dangerous Air
Surreal Fire Images,
Dangerous Air
Sep 10, 2020 1:39 PM CDT

Surreal Fire Images, Dangerous Air

Images from the wildfires in the West

(Newser) - Just how bad are the wildfires in the West? The Los Angeles Times reports that roughly half of all Californians are exposed to air that exceeds safety thresholds for tiny particles known as PM2.5. That equates to about 20 million people. "Rarely have so many Californians breathed such...

1-Year-Old Dies After Wildfire Traps Family

They tried to flee fast-moving Washington blaze

(Newser) - A 1-year-old boy in Washington state has become the youngest victim of the devastating wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest. Okanogan County Sheriff Tony Hawley says Uriel Hyland died and parents Jacob Hyland, 31, and Jamie Hyland, 26, were severely burned while trying to escape the Cold Springs Fire, Fox...

Oregon Fires Could Be Worst in State's History

Hundreds of homes have been destroyed

(Newser) - Deadly windblown wildfires raging across the Pacific Northwest destroyed hundreds of homes in Oregon, the governor said Wednesday, warning it could be the greatest loss of life and property from wildfire in state history. The blazes from the top of the state to the California border caused highway closures and...

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